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[sinatra]

As I was thumbing my way through position notices for deans, I happened across one that asks for a philosophy of undergraduate education. Philosophy of teaching and administrative philosophy I have heard of before. But what is a philosophy of undergraduate education statement? And isn't that something usually articulated well above the level of a dean (e.g., president or provost level at least)?
Thanks for any help understanding this one!

[simplesimon]

Applying for these positions often involves jumping through various hoops. Generating a Philosophy of Undergraduate Education is one such hoop.  There is no model one can follow; the search committee has no particular example in mind, but they are interested in seeing how applicants respond to this particular requirement; some will provide a well thought-out and polished narrative that answers the question.  Some will not.  This helps them whittle the applicant pool.

They want to see what kind of thought you can bring to this question, how articulate you are, and whether or not you are in tune with their institutional profile and the way they see themselves, etc.

I have seen some religious institutions ask candidates to provide of a statement of their faith and their relationship to Christ.  This strikes me as a silly requirement (think Ted Haggard), but again the point is to see how articulate you are and whether or not you are in tune with the way the institution sees itself.

[msparticularity]

I would suggest that they want to know your views on some rather specific issues that are vital to undergraduate education at a college level:

• undergraduate research
• core curriculum
• focus upon technology integration--or lack of same
• professionalization, through developing internships and other pre-professional opportunities
• use of adjuncts and grad assistants versus regular faculty for teaching lower-division courses

[sinatra]

Thanks very much!